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Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Sacred waiting

So a couple weeks ago I got a new book. I had a gift certificate and truth be told my husband surprised me with a Nook for our 10-year anniversary. So with my gift certificate I bought my first Nook book: Sacred Waiting by David Timms.

Why did I choose to buy a book on waiting? Seriously Stacy.

I haven't read enough to give a thorough review but I will do that in the future. For now, I wanted to share a point that I haven't ever heard or read anywhere else before: In Scripture waiting is not an option but a mandate.

"Wait. Wait. Wait. We don't have time to waste. Life feels too short, the opportunities (and needs) too many. Besides, he who hesitates is lost. But time again, God calls us to wait. He refuses to fit our demands and schedules. In contrast, He expects us to conform to His plans and rely on His timing. And in the process we learn deep, transforming truths. Waiting on God runs against every cultural instinct that we have. We wait for nothing. Yet we find that in Scripture, waiting is not an option but a mandate."

A strong theme in the book is that while waiting typically means killing time until we get what we really want, Sacred waiting (waiting on God) is nothing like that. Sacred waiting involves presence and service. Drawing closer to God and responding to His leading. Sacred waiting is a deeper spiritual journey during our wait.

The author goes through the stories of Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus, and how God mandates waiting for seasons (decades) of their lives. I'll share more as I read in the months to come.

Here is a question I have for you:
Do you think waiting is a viable option? Is it a viable option for you?

God's promises are not offered within a time frame. Scripture is filled with countless promises but they are not given to us on our timeline - or even as we believe a promise might be fulfilled.

There are times in my life when I have just waited. I bid my time, cut corners as much as possible, and daily tried to take the reigns.
And there are other times when I have experienced and pursued sacred waiting in order to seek to learn deep, transforming truths.

I could have just bought the second book in the Hunger Games series. I cannot wait to read it. And soon I will. But for now, I'm practicing the discipline of waiting. I'm learning what it means to pursue sacred waiting. And if I believe that my waiting is a mandate, I must also believe it's for a purpose far beyond anything I can ask or imagine.

I love the term "sacred waiting"... and I love it because I know it's true. I'm still waiting but this period of waiting has truly blessed me. I have learned to be more vulnerable (well, a little), I have been drawn into deeper relationships with friends that I wouldn't have otherwise had that opportunity, and mostly, I have taken the time to look at my life and see all the myriad of ways that God has already blessed me. Most important, for what feels like the first time I have HAD to submit completely to God. Only He can bring about new life and so laying that in His hands has been such a relief and in that submission I have found freedom. I'm trusting that God has a beautiful plan for my life and it may not look exactly like the plan I have, but He can dream bigger than I can so I have to trust Him.Curiously, the church has a whole season dedicated to waiting... it's called Advent.

In Its Time

I am a wife, a mother and a saved-by-grace writer who is learning to rest in the truth that He makes everything beautiful in its time. I write about the One whose timing and ways and plans I do not understand, but who gives joy in the midst of waiting and brings beauty out of ashes.